Table: Causes of an Enlarged Spleen - Merck Manuals Consumer Version

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Causes of an Enlarged Spleen

Causes of an Enlarged Spleen

Category	Specific Cause
Anemias	Hereditary elliptocytosis Hereditary spherocytosis Sickle cell disease Sickle Cell Disease Sickle cell disease is an inherited genetic abnormality of hemoglobin (the oxygen-carrying protein found in red blood cells) characterized by sickle (crescent)-shaped red blood cells and chronic... read more (mainly in children) Thalassemia Thalassemias Thalassemias are a group of inherited disorders resulting from an imbalance in the production of one of the four chains of amino acids that make up hemoglobin (the oxygen-carrying protein found... read more
Blood cancers and myeloproliferative neoplasms	Hodgkin lymphoma Hodgkin Lymphoma Hodgkin lymphoma is a type of lymphoma distinguished by the presence of a particular kind of cancer cell called a Reed-Sternberg cell. The cause is unknown. Lymph nodes enlarge but are usually... read more and other lymphomas Leukemia Overview of Leukemia Leukemias are cancers of white blood cells or of cells that develop into white blood cells. White blood cells develop from stem cells in the bone marrow. Sometimes the development goes awry... read more Myelofibrosis Myelofibrosis Myelofibrosis is a disorder in which fibrous tissue in the bone marrow replaces the blood-producing cells, resulting in abnormally shaped red blood cells, anemia, and an enlarged spleen. Myelofibrosis... read more Polycythemia vera Polycythemia Vera Polycythemia vera is a myeloproliferative neoplasm of the blood-producing cells of the bone marrow that results in overproduction of all types of blood cells. Polycythemia vera is due to mutations... read more
Infections	Brucellosis Brucellosis Brucellosis is an infection caused by several species of the gram-negative bacteria Brucella and characterized by fever and bodywide symptoms. Brucellosis is acquired mainly by having contact... read more Candidiasis Candidiasis Candidiasis is a fungal infection caused by several species of the yeast Candida, especially Candida albicans. The most common type of candidiasis is a superficial infection of the mouth, vagina... read more Hepatitis Overview of Hepatitis Hepatitis is inflammation of the liver. (See also Overview of Acute Viral Hepatitis and Overview of Chronic Hepatitis.) Hepatitis is common throughout the world. Hepatitis can be Acute (short-lived) read more Histoplasmosis Histoplasmosis Histoplasmosis is an infection caused by the fungus Histoplasma capsulatum. It occurs mainly in the lungs but can sometimes spread throughout the body. Histoplasmosis is acquired by inhaling... read more Infectious mononucleosis Infectious Mononucleosis Epstein-Barr virus causes a number of diseases, including infectious mononucleosis. The virus is spread through kissing. Symptoms vary, but the most common are extreme fatigue, fever, sore throat... read more Visceral leishmaniasis Leishmaniasis Leishmaniasis is caused by 20 or more species of Leishmania. Leishmaniasis includes several disorders that affect the skin, the mucous membranes of the nose, mouth, or throat or internal organs... read more (kala-azar) Malaria Malaria Malaria is infection of red blood cells with one of five species of Plasmodium, a protozoan. Malaria causes fever, chills, sweating, a general feeling of illness (malaise), and sometimes diarrhea... read more Psittacosis Psittacosis: An Unusual Type of Pneumonia Community-acquired pneumonia is lung infection that develops in people outside a hospital. Many bacteria, viruses, and fungi can cause pneumonia. The most common symptom of pneumonia is a cough... read more Subacute bacterial endocarditis Infective Endocarditis Infective endocarditis is an infection of the lining of the heart (endocardium) and usually also of the heart valves. Infective endocarditis occurs when bacteria enter the bloodstream and travel... read more Syphilis Syphilis Syphilis is a sexually transmitted disease caused by the bacteria Treponema pallidum. Syphilis can occur in three stages of symptoms, separated by periods of apparent good health. It begins... read more Tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) Tuberculosis is a chronic contagious infection caused by the airborne bacteria Mycobacterium tuberculosis. It usually affects the lungs. Tuberculosis is spread mainly when people breathe air... read more
Storage diseases	Gaucher disease Gaucher Disease Gaucher disease is a type of lysosomal storage disorder called a sphingolipidosis. It is caused by a buildup of glucocerebrosides in tissues. Children who have the infantile form usually die... read more Niemann-Pick disease Niemann-Pick Disease Niemann-Pick disease is type of lysosomal storage disorder. Types A and B are sphingolipidoses and are caused by a buildup of sphingomyelin in the tissues. Type C is a lipidosis that is caused... read more Wolman disease Cholesteryl Ester Storage Disease and Wolman Disease Cholesteryl ester storage disease and Wolman disease are hereditary metabolic disorders called lipid storage diseases (lipidoses) that are caused by a buildup of types of cholesterol and triglycerides... read more
Other causes	Amyloidosis Amyloidosis Amyloidosis is a rare disease in which abnormally folded proteins form amyloid fibrils that accumulate in various tissues and organs, sometimes leading to organ dysfunction, organ failure, and... read more Blood clot in a vein from the spleen or to the liver Cirrhosis Cirrhosis of the Liver Cirrhosis is the widespread distortion of the liver's internal structure that occurs when a large amount of normal liver tissue is permanently replaced with nonfunctioning scar tissue. The scar... read more Cysts in the spleen External pressure on veins from the spleen or to the liver Felty syndrome (a subset of people with rheumatoid arthritis Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) Rheumatoid arthritis is an inflammatory arthritis in which joints, usually including those of the hands and feet, are inflamed, resulting in swelling, pain, and often destruction of joints.... read more who also develop low white blood cell count and an enlarged spleen) Hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis Langerhans cell histiocytosis (formerly called Hand-Schüller-Christian disease and Letterer-Siwe disease) Sarcoidosis Sarcoidosis Sarcoidosis is a disease in which abnormal collections of inflammatory cells (granulomas) form in many organs of the body. Sarcoidosis usually develops in people aged 20 to 40, most often people... read more Systemic lupus erythematosus Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) Systemic lupus erythematosus is a chronic autoimmune inflammatory connective tissue disorder that can involve joints, kidneys, skin, mucous membranes, and blood vessel walls. Problems in the... read more (lupus)